SUSTAINABLE BUILDINGS
Asset Classes
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Offices
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- Not applicable
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Enclosed Shopping Centres
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- Not applicable
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Open Air Retail
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- Not applicable
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- Not applicable
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Light Industrial
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- Not applicable
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Multi-Unit Residential Buildings
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- Not applicable
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- Not applicable
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Health Care Facilities
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- Not applicable
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- Not applicable
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Universal
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- Not applicable
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Focus Area
Indoor Air Quality and Hazards
Topic
Baseline Practices
Question #
I1.0a — Owner or landlord manages whole-building IAQ
Question
Has an Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) Management Plan and Assessment been prepared for the whole-building in the past three years?
Applicability
All asset classes
Owner/landlord occupied building
Tenant occupied building – All systems managed by the owner/landlord
Answer & Scoring
- Yes – this is a baseline requirement
- Not applicable – Tenant occupied building: Some or no systems managed by the owner/landlord
Requirements
- The IAQ Management Plan must include the following:
- Responsible parties, including the building team’s training Requirements
- Determine IAQ parameters for the building around carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, temperature, relative humidity, dust, volatile organic compounds and other known contaminants of concern
- Identify HVAC systems impacted by IAQ parameters and set a schedule for regular HVAC inspection and maintenance tasks
- The IAQ assessment must cover spaces within owner or landlord control and include the following:
- Visual inspection of a representative number of HVAC systems for general cleanliness and maintenance
- Visual inspection of occupied areas of the building for general cleanliness
- At least two rounds of spot readings with direct reading instrumentation of the temperature, relative humidity, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, TVOCs and particulate
- Summary of corrective actions that may be needed
- The IAQ Management Plan must include the following:
The assessment must be detailed enough for management to gain a comprehensive understanding of all the factors that could influence the building’s indoor air quality. It must consist of a walkthrough inspection of the building and must report on a review of the following: a list of responsible staff and/or contractors, evidence of training, and job Descriptions, HVAC design data, manuals and operating instructions including control settings and operating schedules, HVAC maintenance and calibration records, testing and balancing reports, inventory of locations where occupancy, equipment, or building use has changed, identification of areas where positive or negative pressures should be maintained, a record of locations that need monitoring or correction, and an inventory of HVAC system components needing repair, adjustment, or replacement.
Suggested performance goals for IAQ include the following for frequently occupied indoor spaces:
- Carbon dioxide not exceeding 700 ppm above ambient (ASHRAE 62.1)
- Carbon monoxide not exceeding 9 ppm (ASHRAE 62.1)
- Total volatile organic compound concentrations do not exceed 1000 μg/m3 (440 ppb) (Health Canada)
- PM10 does not exceed 50 μg/m3 (ASHRAE 62.1)
- Temperature in the range of 21 – 27 C°, considering seasonal variances, relative humidity (ASHRAE 55)
- Relative humidity in the range of 30-60% (USEPA I-BEAM) or more than 20% (CSA)
- HVAC system interiors are in good general condition, clean, free of standing water and debris, and have no visible suspect mold growth.
- If other local regulations exist for the above performance criteria, the most stringent will apply
Regarding the preventive maintenance schedule for HVAC that will impact IAQ, include language regarding how environmental quality performance will be verified. At a minimum, testing should be conducted over a typical workday, considering fluctuations in contaminant levels that may occur. Testing should be conducted, at a minimum, in the morning and afternoon.
During flu season and/or pandemic response consider the following ASHRAE HVAC operation recommendations:
- Maintain temperature and humidity design set points
- Maintain equivalent clean air supply required for design occupancy whenever anyone is present in the space served by a system
- When necessary to flush spaces between occupied periods, operate systems for a time required to achieve three air changes of equivalent clean air supply
- Limit re-entry of contaminated air from energy recovery devices, outdoor air and other sources to acceptable levels
Documentation
- IAQ Management Plan with strategies during normal operations as well as flu season, and/or pandemic response
- IAQ Assessment Report
- I1.0a – IAQ Monitoring Plan Template
Suggested Lead
In-house: Facility Maintenance, Building Manager/Policy Makers
Third-party: IEQ Consultant
Value
- Indoor air quality (IAQ) management is important for maintaining a safe and healthy environment for building occupants. Poor IAQ conditions can lead to adverse health effects in building occupants
- Engage a qualified professional to perform an IAQ assessment to confirm IAQ parameters are within recommended ranges and identify potential areas of improvement
- Develop an IAQ management plan that includes HVAC preventive maintenance and regular HVAC system inspections to maintain cleanliness and reduce air contaminants
RELATED Questions:
Description
Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) is achieved through the selection of appropriate and achievable air quality goals, regular surveillance and testing to verify HVAC performance and hygiene, efficient and effective procedures for addressing occupant IAQ concerns and adequate training for the building management team.
References
Health Canada – Draft guidance on improving indoor air quality in office buildings
Indoor Air Quality Guideline for Non-Industrial Workplaces, EACC, 2020
IAQ Checklist (US EPA)
Example of IAQ Housekeeping Activities (US EPA)
IAQ Maintenance Inspection Form (US EPA)
Indoor Air Quality Guide (US EPA)
ASHRAE HVAC operation recommendations during flu season and/or pandemic response
Adapted BB 3.0 Question
Best Practice 7 – Is an Indoor Air Quality Monitoring Plan in place at the building?
Question 03.02.01 – Does the air quality meet the goals set out in the IAQ Monitoring Plan?